I remember once I wore a new dress out to lunch after a rainstorm, I got such great service...everyone was really friendly. Then I got home and found one reason. They could see through my new outfit.

the only time I wander around the house thinking about my boobs is when I have PMS and want to lop them off.

I think authors think readers want to know what a character looks like, but not so much, really.

There have been a few books/stories I've read where the POV character is never physically described, and I only notice it because I'm curious about the approaches the author takes to doing it. I'd probably never notice if I was just reading.

One thing a fair number of male writers do is have a female character look at herself nude in the mirror and evaluate herself ... favorably.

There's a great post by Sherwood Smith about that up at Book View Cafe [link]

Ah yes Toddson, I believe that's what Suela meant by having the female POV figure articulating the male gaze.

Gosh, don't we all admire our stunning physical attributes in the mirror on a regular basis?

I generally find any excessive physical descriptions of characters annoying. It isn't a big part of getting to know them unless a physical characteristic relates to their motives or nature. But nothing bugs more than repeating the same description. Ha, to repeat myself from above.

I blame the drugs.

I don't believe I have stunning attributes.

Well you do, but I think I have only met one or two women that would actually gaze at themselves and mentally focus on the list of quality attributes. More are likely to zero in on their uneven eyebrows or some flaw. I only think I have seen this method of description a few times and it does cause me, as the reader, to think about the clumsy writing rather than the character. A character randomly noting their jeans making their butt look good or bemoanIng a physical flaw in a mirror wouldn't give me pause at all.

Well, okay, there is an occasional few minutes a year where everything falls into line, and I might be thinking "Wow, looking AND feeling pretty good today..who knew?" but most days I'm wondering if it's too late to get braces, or what's going on with my crazy hair or sun-phobic complexion.